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Tuesday, 15 March 2016

Your Spouse's Money!

When I was a kid, my Grandfather
used to tell me lot of stories, a privilege which most of the kids this
generation are devoid of. One of the stories which I still remember is about
Death. The story goes around like this – During early times, Death was one
thing which used to happen to people at any point of time without any reason.
When the time of their departure from this earth used to come, people died
instantaneously, no sickness, no accident; they simply used to fall on ground and
were declared dead. This made families very upset. They all gathered together
and prayed to the Lord of Death – Yamdoot. He answered their prayers and asked
them what they are looking for. People told Him that our loved ones are hale
and hearty one day, and then suddenly they die without any reason and this way
doesn’t give us any time to prepare ourselves for their death both mentally and
emotionally. Yamdoot understood their plight and finally changed the way he
used to take lives. He said from now on wards Death will happen for a reason, be
it accident, be it Health issues, but there will be a reason. Only thing which will
remain uncertain is the Time of Death, no one will ever know when one will die.
People were ok with this change; at least they will now not fret over how their
family member died? Till date this thing has continued, Death happens with a
reason – old age, heart failure, accident, so on and so forth.

This story relates so well with
the way, we deal with our finances. Since we all don’t know when we will die,
it becomes very important for us to share our financial details with our spouse
and if he/she is not there then with the kids, so that they are prepared when
the day arrives. In this time and space, where most of the families have dual
income with both the parents working and having separate bank accounts,
sometimes we don’t think it is important to discuss our money details with our
spouse considering that we have earned the money we have. But if you look at it
from other perspective, the cons of not sharing the details with your spouse
are much more than the pros. Let’s understand it point by point.

1.Security: If your spouse knows how much
you save and where all you save, it becomes easier for them to take their
personal financial decisions for themselves. Sometimes going ahead with same
job is really tough, knowing that your partner has enough money for 6-7 months
back-up it becomes easier for one to decide on the road ahead.

2.Less chances of money getting lost: If
you and your spouse share your financial details with each other, it becomes
easier for the survivor to track the money in case something happens to the
other partner and he/she leaves this world without telling anything. Imagine in
case of a homemaker, if the only earning member of the family dies, and she
doesn’t know where his husband used to save money and what all bank accounts he
had. Not only she has to bear an emotional burden of taking care of herself and
her family but she also need to get the finances right.

3.Diversification of Assets: If you know
your spouse has invested in so and so financial instrument, it will help you
take a better decision in terms of your own investments, and there would be
lesser risk of putting all eggs in one basket.

4.Trust: In addition to all the points
mentioned above, this habit builds trust between the couple, which is an
integral part of any relationship.

So,
let’s have a reality check today. Are we preparing are loved ones?